by George Anderson
The Yellowstone River: Lots of early snow storms in October and November have left the mountains covered with the deep white stuff and made us excited about going into the winter with a very good snow pack for late November. It has been snowing all week up high and reports are that the Bridger range got another four feet of the white stuff on top of a decent amount left from previous storms earlier in October and November. Hopefully, we are seeing the end of the drought and a return to more normal water flows in all of our major rivers, especially the Bighorn and Missouri. Here on the Yellowstone we have been lucky, as even in low water years the Yellowstone near Livingston always has an adequate amount of water and the fishing seems to have become better and better as more people are fishing on a catch and release basis.
This summer we had a lot of late spring precipitation and excellent flows throughout the summer on the Yellowstone River. We expect this pattern to continue this next spring and summer. With these higher water flows, we noticed a huge increase in the number of mature fish spawning this year both early in the spring with the rainbows and now late into the fall with the browns. Young rainbows from the past couple of spring spawning seasons have grown up into the strong mature fish that the Yellowstone is famous for. The Cutthroat population has continued to grow, especially throughout Paradise Valley due to catch and release regulations. Add good numbers of nice sized browns and you have a wonderful mix of wild trout. Native Whitefish are always present in good numbers and are eager to take most any bead head nymph, to the delight of beginning anglers. We anticipate that the ideal spawning conditions this fall will also produce lots of good, healthy small browns next spring.
Anglers are catching more fish each day on the Yellowstone then before, and our guides are coming back with reports of lots of larger fish being hooked. Even if some of those big ones get away, its still fun to know that they are there. Not all the big ones got away though. Early in November we saw a photo of a beautiful 12 lb. Brown that was caught on a streamer in the stretch between Grey Owl and MallardÕs Rest on the Yellowstone. October was especially good streamer fishing this year and this extended right into November.
Another good indicator that points to good fishing this coming season is the amount of insect life we saw this summer on the Yellowstone River. It started in late March, when the Blue Wing Olive hatches started. These spring Baetis hatches run through the end of April and bring up pods of rainbows, which love to hang along the edges of foam covered eddies. In late April and early May hatching caddis carpeted the water during the ŌMotherÕs Day caddis hatch." Salmon flies were thick in the willows during late June and early July, through the valley, all the way to Gardiner. Impressive numbers of PMDÕs were seen in July after the runoff, and even some big brown drakes in mid-summer. From July, all the way into early October, hordes of grasshoppers in the hayfields bordering the Yellowstone had big fish moving into the shallower runs and riffles where they could pig out on hoppers that were being blown into harmÕs way. All in all the insects had a really good year.
Fishing attractor patterns in the summer months is a fun way to fish the Yellowstone. Even when there are no insects hatching, an attractor or combination of hoppers and attractor drys usually produces some fast action. This makes for fun, easy fishing for everyone. Fishing a hopper with a smaller attractor dry or bead head as a dropper is a deadly combination. When the hopper action is good, weÕll even fish a pair of different hoppers. There are few things more exciting in fly fishing than watching a hopper get demolished by a hungry rainbow or brown!
All indications point to another outstanding year here on the Yellowstone. With the good numbers of trout we have in the river now, along with the good insect hatches and more normal water flows, 2006 is shaping up to be another great fishing year here on the Yellowstone.
The Spring Creeks: Although we do fish the Spring Creeks throughout the winter, the really exciting fishing begins in early to mid-March when the spring Baetis hatches start. These Baetis hatches continue on throughout April into early May. These first mayflies of the season seem to bring up all the big fish that have been feeding on scuds, sow bugs, small nymphs and midge larva all winter. As soon as these mayflies start emerging, the fish start looking up and seeking out the emerging duns, the dry fly fishing can be spectacular. If you come in late April you can combine the spring creek fishing with a chance to hit the famous MotherÕs Day Caddis hatches on the Yellowstone.
The PMD hatches were strong again this past summer on all the creeks, providing some exciting dry fly fishing from mid-June on throughout August. We have a few clients who have fished the creeks for more than 20 years who reported that this year was the thickest blanket PMD hatch theyÕve ever seen. Prime time for the PMDÕs is late June through July each year. As most of you know, the spring creeks require reservations and these get booked up quickly, especially throughout the busy summer months. We reserve some rod reservations on each of the creeks for our guided clients, so be sure to call or e-mail us early to secure your guide bookings with your favorite guides and to get these spring creek rod reservations locked in while they are available.
Many of the guides and Outfitters we book for specialize in fishing the spring creeks, where technique and casting precision are more demanding than on most of the other rivers and streams we fish. A good guide makes a huge difference when you are fishing over selective trout, regardless of whether you are a beginner or an expert. We recommend that you allow us to book one of our best guides to help you on the creeks, especially for that first day or two.
The unparalleled beauty of these Paradise Valley Spring Creeks and the exciting visual fishing with both nymphs and dry flies for large, wild trout are what brings back fly fishermen from around the country each year.
Other streams and rivers we fish: Here in Livingston, weÕre blessed with a large variety of waters to fish, from big rivers like the Yellowstone, Madison, Gallatin and Missouri as well to waters inside Yellowstone National Park.
The Madison and Lower Madison were excellent this past year and we expect this trend to continue. We fish the Lower Madison, below the Beartrap Canyon on a daily basis, as this is not much more than an hourÕs drive from our shop. Early there are good caddis hatches, and the streamer fishing for big browns can be very effective, especially in April, May and June. There is a good population of crayfish in this lower portion of the Madison and the big fish really go after them, especially in the spring and fall.
Yellowstone National Park waters we fish include the streams in the Northeast part of the park like Slough Creek, Soda Butte Creek and the Lamar River. We are one of the few shops in our area that has a permit that allows guides and outfitters working for us to take clients to these Yellowstone Park waters. The fishing for big wild cutthroat trout is some of the finest in the country! Unlike the decline of wild Cutthroats in both Yellowstone Lake and the river below the lake, the fishing in Slough Creek, the Lamar and Soda Butte has remained strong. With strict catch and release regulations, there is no reason these fisheries wonÕt continue to impress visiting anglers with beautiful, fat cutthroats up to twenty inches. These native trout are not only beautiful fish but easy to catch and they love to rise to a dry fly. In late summer and the fall we see good hatches of big green and gray drakes on these streams, which always bring up the big fish. The summer fishing is consistently good, except when we get big thunderstorms in the Park that can muddy the water for a day or two.
We have a multitude of smaller streams close to Livingston that appeal to anglers who like smaller waters and streams that they can explore and fish without running into a lot of other anglers. There are also places the guides know well and can take you on a special day that youÕll be sure to remember. Streams like Mill Creek, The Shields River, The Main and West Boulder rivers, The East Gallatin, The Stillwater River, and the Upper Smith River are all wonderful trout streams that receive little fishing pressure.
